Novel Full Chapter 2237 - He’s Here!
Chapter 2237 – He’s Here!
Meanwhile——
Outside the chessboard, atop an unassuming little hillock.
The young man in black with cloth covering his eyes sighed. “You’re quite impressive, Fellow Daoist. You actually managed to invite so many old-timers out of their respective unknown territories. You must… have really opened up a vein this time, huh?”
“I wouldn’t call it ‘opening a vein.’ All I did was use up years of accumulated merit and favors,” the wrinkled old man answered honestly.
“Favors, huh? It’s a pity, but favors are as fragile as paper, unable to withstand the wind and rain. You ultimately cannot rely on them.” The young man in black shook his head.
“Why do you say that?” The old man frowned.
“Just watch, Fellow Daoist,” said the young man in black, raising his cup of tea to his lips.
……
“Why aren’t they fighting yet? It’s infuriating!” grumbled Qi Wei.
She and Li Sanjiu had arrived before the chess match began. They were just hidden amongst the distant onlookers.
“Young Mistress, when experts play chess, no one will act rashly until the last step,” Li Sanjiu transmitted. “When playing chess, strategy is of the utmost importance. You must continuously surround and suppress your opponent. Only then do you strike the killing blow and determine victory and defeat.
“If anyone attacks rashly before the time is right, the consequences will be too great for them to bear.”
Qi Wei rubbed her forehead. “What a pain! I still prefer to just grab a weapon and duke it out.”
After a moment’s silence, Li Sanjiu said, “When the snipe and the clam fight, it’s the fisherman who benefits. If they do battle, both sides will take heavy casualties, and those watching from outside the chessboard will reap the fisherman’s benefits.”
“Those watching from outside the chessboard?” Qi Wei asked in confusion.
“The Three Purities Daoist Court have sent their forces into battle,” said Li Sanjiu. “However, the other factions hostile to Su Yi have yet to reveal their hand.
“Like the Western Paradise Spirit Mountains and the Divine Court of Providence.
“And thus far, only one group of Su Yi’s supporters have stepped forth: those old-timers from unknown territories.
“Those from spacetime forbidden zones, and others in search of the power of reincarnation, are still watching from the shadows, eyeing the proceedings hungrily.
“At times like these, the two sides of this chess match will take turns, revealing everything they’ve prepared one step at a time, just like in a real game. This will prevent the onlookers from seizing an opportunity to exploit their conflict.”
Qi Wei sighed. “I understand all that, but I’m still impatient. If only we were completely assured of our victory! I wish I could just grab a knife and kill every last one of those geezers!”
Li Sanjiu fell briefly silent. “Unless… you have the strength to suppress everyone both in and out of the chessboard, no one could do such a thing. Not even Yi Daoxuan or Li Fuyou at their former peaks.”
Qi Wei raised her eyebrows. “It’s strange. Fellow Daoist Xiao set off on his own several days ago. Why is there still no sign of him?”
Li Shanjiu’s expression shifted subtly. “The time is not yet right. When he emerges, it’ll determine the ultimate outcome of this chess game, and the storm will erupt in full force. He has to stay cool. He cannot act rashly!”
Qi Wei hadn’t outright told him who Xiao Jian was, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew the answer in his heart.
……
Before Skybright Mountain.
Shao Yunke and the other eight Nine-Tribulation Master Gods were staring down the five Master Gods from unknown territories.
The air was rife with tension!
Si Ming couldn’t help but feel nervous. At this point, the situation was as startling as could be, but their side still had the upper hand!
But then, a calm voice resounded out of nowhere. “Fellow Daoists, you’re violating the rules!”
A seemingly youthful Daoist rode in on a wooden sword accompanying this voice. His eyes glinted with sharp light, and his aura was sharp and imposing. It was difficult to look directly at him.
The crowd was instantly in uproar.
Shao Yunke and the other Nine-Tribulation Master Gods sighed in relief.
This was none other than Master God Yun He! A peak Nine-Tribulation Undying Realm Master God and a living legend!
When Master God Yun He appeared, the armored man and others from unknown territories couldn’t help but frown.
There was no doubt about it; they knew how capable Master God Yun He was.
Meanwhile, Master God Yun He’s robes swayed around him. As he descended into the battlefield, he raised a simple, mysterious medallion into the air. It looked almost as if it were made out of jade, yet it seemed somehow different, too.
When the medallion floated into the air, it manifested a diagram of the interweaving radiance of the sun and moon surrounded by ten thousand stars.
The diagram looked as if it were formed of countless Grand Daos, and it seemed incomparably mystical.
“I’ll have to ask you all to leave immediately!” Master God Yun He said calmly.
This wasn’t a discussion. It was an order!
The armored man and the other experts of unknown territories looked stricken. All of them gazed intently at the medallion as if in shock and disbelief.
“How did you get your hands on the Dao Origin Medallion?” the red-robed Daoist beside the armored giant couldn’t help but blurt.
“Its owner lent it to me, of course,” said Master God Yun He. “Leave quickly. Don’t get involved any further.”
The red-robed Daoist’s expression shifted erratically, but in the end, he just sighed deeply, turned, and left.
Si Ming was stunned. “Senior, how could you just up and leave like that?”
The red-robed Daoist ignored him, blurred through the air, and vanished within moments.
“That’s the Dao Origin Medallion. Those of unknown territories have to step back when they see it, no matter who they are,” said the woman in purple, a complicated look on her face. “We didn’t expect that it still existed in this world. Rumor has it that…”
Here, she seemed to realize something. She shook her head and said no more.
“Little fellow, I’m afraid you won’t be able to give this big gift you’ve been planning. We still owe your master a favor, but we’ll have to repay him another day!” The woman in purple sighed, then turned and left too.
“The favor you owe my master has less weight than a medallion!?” Si Ming said in a rage. These old fogies change their tune in the blink of an eye! They’re disregarding everything over a medallion, and now they’re just leaving me in the lurch! How could they do this?
But to his immense disappointment, no one paid him any heed.
The armored giant, the man in imperial dragon robes, and the elegant older scholar left too, one after another!
This development left the whole audience stunned.
Master God Yun He showed up and used a medallion to force five ancient experts of unknown territories to retreat. Who wouldn’t have been startled? And who wouldn’t have been terrified?
Now, only Si Ming and the blackbird remained. Their situation seemed awkward as could be; it was like a joke.
Xi Jingshan, Xi Ning, and the older-generation experts of the Xi Family felt chills course down their spines. They felt as if they’d been plunged into an icy abyss.
Meanwhile, over on that unassuming little hillock, the wrinkled old man clenched his teacup, his gaze horrifying to behold.
“The Dao Origin Medallion? Don’t tell me that the legend who stepped onto the River of Epochs has returned?” His scrawny, decrepit chest heaved in an obvious loss of composure.
The young man with a cloth over his eyes said calmly, “No, they’re just watching the situation here closely, and they do not wish to see the power of reincarnation return.”
The old man’s expression darkened. “This… was too much!”
The young man rose and said, “The winner is a king, and the loser is a bandit. You’ve lost, and your only choice is to accept it. It seems you no longer have any hope of winning our bet, so… you are not to get involved any further.”
The old man shook his head. “Not necessarily.”
The young man frowned. “You’re going to renege on our bet?”
The old man drained his cup and tea and said, “No. Su Yi has yet to show himself, so it’s too early to claim victory.”
After a moment’s silence, the young man slowly sat back down. “Then wash out your eyes and wait.”
Meanwhile, in front of Skybright Mountain.
Si Ming stood there in a daze for a while before suddenly letting out a self-deprecating laugh. “I didn’t realize it, but it seems I’m still too naive. I thought rallying a group of old-timers like that would be enough to do as I pleased.”
Master God Yun He said with cold indifference, “This is what it means to be a ludicrous, bumbling clown. Hurry up and leave. Don’t bring further shame upon your master!”
But Si Ming laughed. “I’m a pawn in his chess game. I ought to forge valiantly ahead. How could I possibly shrink back?”
He swept his gaze across the terrifying experts of the enemy camp, his eyes suddenly cold and unyielding. “My stubborn old master isn’t afraid to die. How could I, his disciple, possibly disappoint him?”
“Foolhardy courage. Juvenile! Even if you insist on seeking death, it won’t change the outcome!” Master God Yun He said with a cold snort. He couldn’t be bothered to pay any further attention to a junior like Si Ming.
His eyes flashed like cold lightning as he scanned his surroundings. “Does anyone else wish to join our game? If so, step forth!”
His voice spread throughout the ten directions.
But a long time passed, and no one answered.
When the distant onlookers saw this, waves of emotion coursed through their hearts.
Master God Yun He had only just arrived, but he’d already stabilized the situation, and he was so imposing that none of the old-timers hiding in the shadows dared to show themselves!
Shao Yunke and the other Nine-Tribulation Master Gods clustered around him, as did Xun Hong and the other Master Gods beneath that level.
Master God Yun He shone as brilliantly as the midday sun!
“Su Yi, don’t you think it’s about time you showed yourself?” Master God Yun He said with cold indifference. “Rather, do you really plan to just stand back and watch as this woman you have a special bond with dies?”
As he spoke, he gazed at Su Yi.
The crowd stirred. All of them realized the implications; Master God Yun He thought that Su Yi had already arrived!
Su Yi? Xi Ning’s heart clenched, and the look on her beautiful face shifted.
Xi Jingshan, meanwhile, looked flabbergasted. Was I wrong earlier? Su Yi isn’t afraid to die, and he’s already here?
It was then that a calm voice rang out, breaking the oppressive, deathly silence.
“It’s a pity that you were the only one to step forth, Yun He.”
This voice had only just rung out when a spacetime ripple appeared before Skybright Mountain.
Then, the crowd watched as a tall, upright figure emerged.
He was dressed in blue, and he looked elegant and detached, as if he’d risen out of the dust of mundanity. Beneath the light of the heavens, his handsome face shone like jade.
This was none other than Su Yi!
Xi Ning’s eyes widened at the sight of him, and her delicate eyelashes fluttered. The rims of her eyes reddened and misted with tears.
She’d been prepared to face death with equanimity, but now, she could no longer repress her emotions. Her slender frame quivered uncontrollably.
He… he really did come!
She’d never wanted Su Yi to come, but she’d known all along that he was sure to come for her.
This was based on her understanding of him, as well as their wordless mutual understanding.
Thus, she wasn’t surprised to see him, but there was still no disguising her excitement, delight, and… exasperation.
But this exasperation proved that she hadn’t misjudged Su Yi, and that Su Yi had never let her down!
Meanwhile, the entire crowd was in uproar, and countless gazes focused on Su Yi.
Throughout heaven and earth, he was now the complete center of attention!